The 1960 election was a close contest between Democratic senator John F. Kennedy and Republican Vice President Richard Nixon.
JFK’s Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson had taken the helm in 1963 after the president’s assassination. The election followed closely on the heels of these events, and the Republican nominee, Barry Goldwater was not able to compete with LBJ. It was a landslide victory for LBJ with 61 percent of the popular vote and a whooping 486 electoral votes for LBJ as opposed to Goldwater’s 52.
The presidential election of 1968 came in a tumultuous year, and it was particularly tumultuous for the Democratic party: President Lyndon B. Johnson’s popularity had plummeted due to the rising death tolls in the Vietnam War, and he decided not to seek re-election.